JAG s08e15 Episode Script
Friendly Fire
How's your fuel, Sugar Two? I show four-point-O, Sugar One.
Another ten minutes, we'll be headed home.
Hey! Look at those fireworks! SUGAR TWO: Someone's firing at us.
Beehive, this is Sugar One.
We're taking ground fire 20 klicks southwest of Kandahar.
Request permission to hit 'em with 20 mike-mike.
Stand by, Sugar One.
Any reports of unfriendlies near Kandahar, sir? Not tonight.
Tell him to stand by.
Hold your fire, Sugar One.
We're checking it out.
I'm going to take a mark.
SUGAR ONE: We got a couple of vehicles, light artillery.
Whoa.
You see that? SUGAR TWO: See what, Sugar One? SUGAR ONE: Taking A-A fire.
Declaring self-defense.
Switch is hot, set to signal release.
Rolling in.
Master arm on.
Hitting pickle.
Bomb's away.
( whistling ) ( explosion ) BEEHIVE: Shack! Disengage! Disengage! Friendlies.
They were shooting at us.
Sugar Two, you saw that, right? ( groaning ) Easy you'll be all right.
( groans ) CHEGWIDDEN: The Navy's never filed criminal charges over a friendly fire incident in wartime before, until now.
Lieutenant Commander David Ridley dropped a Mark 82 laser-guided bomb on a platoon of British soldiers Three dead, three wounded.
What did the preliminary inquiry find, Sir? Commander Ridley did not have permission from the AWACS to engage.
What are the charges, Admiral? Involuntary manslaughter, dereliction of duty.
You and Lieutenant Roberts will prosecute.
Yes, sir.
I'll be looking forward to getting back into the courtroom again, sir.
Commander Turner, you'll defend.
Aye, sir.
This is a high-profile case.
The media will be in the courtroom.
Commander Rabb, since you'll be presiding, do you have a problem with that? Judge Rabb? Well, as an aviator, I think he has a certain hands-on understanding of the issues.
As an aviator, sir, the commander may be biased in favor of the pilot.
Then don't be.
Absolutely not, sir.
Commander, Colonel, I'm counting on both of you to maintain a certain level of decorum? You'll have no trouble from us, sir.
That'll be all.
Aye, sir.
You seemed pretty confident in there, Harm.
Well, I've observed enough judges.
How hard can it be to be one? I was referring to your assurance that there'll be no sparks between us in the courtroom.
Well, there won't be.
Yeah, that's what I thought when I was a judge.
We know what happened then.
Yeah, you started throwing your judicial weight around and tried to Buffalo a guilty verdict.
Excuse me, I was the one showing restraint.
You were trying to hijack the proceedings by circumventing the rules.
Your rules.
You were making them up as you went along.
Oh, no, you don't.
I was following the law.
Well, you can be sure of one thing While I'm in t hot seat, there'll be no retribution.
No payback? No.
Good.
I'll hold you to it.
The meat loaf not up to your standards this morning, Petty Officer? I'm going to be your clerk of courtsir.
I thought I'd better do some reading.
Well, research never hurt anyone, but a good judge's clerk will temper book smarts with common sense.
By the way, I don't expect you to be a silent partner.
Yes, sir.
What's it say in there, anyway? "A judge must be a passive recipient of information, "a quiet force who is most effective when nearly invisible.
" Commander, Coates.
Mind if we join you? Vnless Your Honor no longer mixes with lowly trial lawyers.
Now is not a good time to get on my bad side, Sturgis.
Roberts: "A trial lawyer who becomes a judge is like a boxer who becomes a referee.
" I never had a judge hit me.
Day's still young.
"It is exceedingly difficult "for the passionate advocate to become the objective observer.
" Don't you two have trial prep? My client's on his way here.
And Colonel MacKenzie is interviewing our witnesses, sir.
Well, why aren't you with her? Colonel MacKenzie has gone out to the Coral Sea, sir.
Roberts: Due to my limited duty status, sir, I'm kind of landlocked.
Turner: Are you worried about being a judge? Why would I "e? You two have all the work to do.
I'm just an objective observer, right, Coates? Right, sir.
You could have told the Admiral you didn't want to preside.
Why would I do that? That would be lying.
Millions of years ago, there were hunters who killed saber-toothed tigers with sticks and stones.
Back at the cave, there were others Not so courageous, but wise and fair And they would divvy up the meat amongst the tribe.
You two don't think I can "carve the meat" fairly? You are a natural born killer, Commander.
MAN: What we have here, Colonel, is command and control error, not pilot error.
MACKENZIE: You're part of command and control, CAG.
And I'm only as good as the information that I'm provided.
So you didn't know the British were conducting a live-fire exercise near Kandahar? The Coalition Air Operations Center never told us.
I briefed my pilots only on what I knew.
Even without the heads-up about the British troops, Commander Ridley is still bound by the rules of engagement.
Correct.
The enemy is not, however, bound by any rules whatsoever.
Well, our rules prohibit deliberately descending into anti-aircraft range in order to draw enemy fire.
Commander Ridley descended to take a mark of the suspected enemy position, not to draw fire.
The AWACS never gave permission to engage, sir.
Colonel, when you are taking A-A fire, you do not need permission Not from AWACS, or a JAG officer.
CAG, the anti-aircraft fire reported by Commander Ridley turned out to be tracers fired at ground level by the British.
Well, it all comes back to intelesn't it, Colonel? No one ever briefed the AWACS that there were friendlies in the area.
If the strike controller had had that information, there wouldn't have been a delay in getting the word to Ridley, and he never would have engaged.
MAN: Given the circumstances, I believed that dropping a single bomb on an apparent enemy position was both necessary and proportional.
What circumstances? There had been unfriendlies in the area three days prior.
And on two previous missions, I'd taken incoming.
Doesn't that count for something? It would, had you shot at the unfriendlies instead of the British.
From 5,000 feet at night, tracer fire looks like A-A fire.
Ask my wingman, he saw it.
That's another problem When I interviewed Lieutenant Commander Barry, he said he never saw the second burst, the one that prompted you to fire.
So, he missed it.
He saw the first one.
The British say they stopped shooting when they saw you descend.
They claim there was no second burst.
We need to find a defense for you, Commander.
BILL O'Reilly: It is absolutely second-guessing at its worst.
It's hypocritical, unjust, and dangerous to the country.
A pilot in combat makes a split-second decision then is forced to answer to some pinhead politician if something goes wrong? Hey, It's war lots of stuff goes wrong.
You cannot turn an honest mistake on the battlefield into a crime, and you can't treat American fighting men like criminals if an accident happens.
Come on.
We have a war to fight.
I don't always agree with him, but he's right partly.
What part is that, sir? We do have a war to fight.
And I'm not just talking about Afghanistan.
I'm talking about a place that's even more dangerous Capitol Hill, Appropriations.
I'm not sure, I, uh, see the connection.
The British are screaming bloody murder, A.
J.
That makes senators with purse strings nervous about funding.
It's tragic, the whole thing.
One grave error, three young men pay with their lives.
Now another one's going to have to pay with his career.
Well, sir, that has yet to be determined.
Commander Ridley made a mistake.
Now, surely, when it comes to holding our people accountable, the Navy's standards are higher than those of the court of public opinion.
Our standards are the same as they've always been, Mr.
Secretary a presumption of innocence, and a fair and impartial hearing of the facts.
Which is why you appointed an aviator to sit in judgment of one of his own? Commander Rabb is an excellent attorney, and I'm sure he'll make an excellent judge.
I hope you're right.
Yes, sir.
Washington is at least as much about appearances as it is about policy.
I told you that I would fight the good fight to get the Navy what it needs.
I just hope that this incident doesn't jeopardize that.
I know you share that hope with me, A.
J.
Yes, sir.
Turner: Bloodwork showed amphetamines in your system after the incident.
That'd be from the Go-pills, sir.
One pill every two or three hours in flight.
Plus traces of Benzodiazepine.
No-Go pills, sir.
Sedatives? Yeah.
It's for a combat nap before takeoff.
You're mixing stimulants with sedatives.
Everything's prescribed by the flight surgeon.
These Go-pills they make you jittery or nervous? No, sir.
More like honing my concentration to a razor-sharp edge, sir.
Good.
Good, just make sure you tell that to the jury.
( sighs ) All the pilots take anti-fatigue medication, Commander.
I don't see how the prosecution's going to use that against me.
They're not going to, Ridley.
We're going to use it to get you off If we're lucky.
BAILIFF: All rise.
RABB: Please be seated.
This court martial will now come to order.
Let the record reflect that the accused, counsel and Members are all present.
Is prosecution ready to proceed? We are, Your Honor.
And the defense? Ready, Your Honor.
Before we begin, will counsel please approach the bench? What's with the cheering section? I have no control over the Secretary of the Navy, Your Honor.
Well, let him know that I will not stand for any displays of favoritism in my courtroom.
I'll do my best.
All right, let's roll.
Excuse me? Proceed, Colonel.
Friendly fire.
That's such an innocent sounding phrase, but there's another term, too fratricide.
The killing of one's brother.
In this case, our brothers in arms, British soldiers in Afghanistan.
The prosecution will prove that the defendant, Lieutenant Commander David Ridley, violated the rules of engagement and disregarded instructions from a strike controller on an AWACS aircraft.
The result Commander Ridley recklessly dropped a precision-guided bomb But not on the enemy On British soldiers, killing three.
His excuse? Well, he claimed it was self-defense, that someone was firing at him.
But there are no other witnesses who can corroborate that.
Colonel, this sounds more like a closing argument.
Please confine your opening to a preview of evidence you plan to submit.
I thought I was, Your Honor.
It's my call, Counselor.
Prosecution will prove that Commander Ridley is guilty of dereliction of duty and involuntary manslaughter.
Thank you.
Friendly fire is a problem as old as warfare itself.
General Stonewall Jackson, in the Civil War, was killed by his own men on a night-time mission.
During Desert Storm, nearly 25% of our causalities were caused by friendly fire.
And while these losses are tragic, they're also unavoidable.
Objection.
This is argumentative.
Overruled.
Turner: It is against this backdrop that you will consider the case of Lieutenant Commander David Ridley, a decorated and highly skilled pilot, who took incoming fire three days earlier from the same locale.
MAN ( British accent ): We were positioned in Wadi-East, a ditch about 25 kilometers southwest of Kandahar.
And what are your duties, Lieutenant Whitehall? Range Safety Officer for the live-fire exercise.
Will you please tell the Members what happened that night? My unit was engaged in tank-stalking operations.
Were your men firing weapons? Small arms and machine guns, Leftenant.
All at ground level.
And did there come a time when you observed an aircraft? There did.
Can you please tell the Members what happened then? When we saw the American aircraft approaching, I called for a "check-fire.
" Did the firing cease? Ours did, Leftenant.
But one of the American jets swooped down over our position.
Did you transmit the Coalition Air Ops? Our generator had just broken down.
A few seconds later, the American bomb hit us.
I lost three men.
Lance Corporal Greengrass, Lance Corporal Weatherall, Staff Sergeant Porter.
You were injured in the attack as well.
I was some distance from the strike, sir.
But clearly not far enough.
Your witness, Cwmmander.
Lieutenant, why did you tell your men to cease firing when you saw the American jets overhead? We all knew about the American gunship firing into that wedding party at Uruzgan, sir.
Killed 40 civilians.
The wedding party where the celebrants were firing small arms into the air.
Objection, Your Honor.
That incident is irrelevant to these proceedings.
Your witness opened the door, Counselor.
Overruled.
Local Afghans were firing into the air, Commander.
Apparently, that's how they celebrate.
The American flight crew wasn't charged with a crime in that incident, was it, Lieutenant? Your Honor.
Now you're pushing it.
Sorry, Your Honor.
During your tank-stalking exercises, did your men fire any weapons into the air? No, sir.
But they fired from the Wadi floor upwards, towards a tank on higher ground.
That's correct, sir, yes.
Your machine guns shoot tracers, don't they? Every fifth round.
And tracers light up the night sky.
That's correct, yes, sir.
So your men were firing small arms and machine guns; You were trying to fix a broken generator; You were worried about two jets flying over, and yet you're sure none of your men fired after Commander Ridley's plane descended over your position.
I'm quite sure, sir.
Nothing further.
MacKENZIE: I don't mind taking an unpopular case.
Public opinion's against us.
The SECNAV wants a quick hanging.
Turner's a tough opponent.
I can handle all that.
To have to fight the judge, too? He's completely out of line.
You know, he's injecting his own opinion, breaking my momentum wherever he can.
How much more payback do you think the guy can dish out? With all do respect, ma'am, maybe we should just focus on what's under our control.
Are you defending him? Because he is out of line, Bud.
I'm sorry if you can't see that because of some residual commander worship.
I think your right, ma'am.
Sometimes the people we look up to do have feet of Clay.
So would you say I was a passive recipient of information today? Sir? "A quiet force who's most effective when nearly invisible"? Yes, Commander.
Is that what you really think? I think Colonel MacKenzie's having a tough time in there, sir.
And you think that I'm the cause of that.
I think she might think you're the cause of it.
Colonel no, as you were.
I just wanted to commend you and Lieutenant Roberts on just an excellent job thus far.
Thank you, Mr.
Secretary.
I'm a bit surprised at the apparent level of hostility between you and the commander in the courtroom.
I imagined you might have a bit more sway.
Well, neither the commander nor I sway easily, sir.
Well, if I can be of any assistance in your pursuit of the truth You can, sir.
Really? I think it would be helpful if you weren't sitting on my side of the courtroom during the proceedings, sir, in the interest of eliminating sway.
Mm.
Yes, I can find other ways to spend my afternoons.
Colonel, again, keep up the good work.
WOMAN: Commander Ridley asked for permission to engage.
I told him to stand by.
What did you do next, Lieutenant Kaufman? I attempted to ascertain whether there were any friendlies in the area, ma'am.
And what did Commander Ridley do? He descended, declared self-defense and dropped a 500-pound bomb before I could get back to him.
Your witness.
Nothing at this time, Your Honor, subject to my right to recall the witness.
I have a few questions, Lieutenant.
Your Honor? Yes, Colonel? Nothing, sir.
Wouldn't you normally have that information available? What Coalition troops are in the area? Yes, sir, but there was a breakdown.
The British reported their exercise to the Coalition Air Ops Center, but it slipped through the cracks at the Center and never got to us.
But Commander Ridley would have expected to have received the information immediately, correct? Your Honor, I have to object to the hypothetical question.
You're objecting to my question? I am, Your Honor.
Overruled.
May we approach? Sure, come on up.
You may approach.
Your Honor, I object to your questioning the witness.
The Court has that right, Colonel, you know that.
Do you have a problem with my questioning the witness? No, Your Honor, but I had planned to ask the witness the same questions later and I still do.
Oh, great, then the Members get to hear it twice.
Once with the inference that the judge favors the defense.
That was not my intent, Colonel.
Clarity was.
Well, the effect is to prejudice the prosecution.
If I'm going to lose this case, I'd like to do it without any help from the bench.
What is your problem? You are, Your Honor.
Respectfully.
First you interrupt my opening statement, and then you let defense counsel refer to another friendly fire incident where no charges were filed and now your questions of Lieutenant Kaufman imply that the Air Ops Center was to blame.
So what do you want, Colonel? Some judicial restraint, sir.
You're asking me to refrain from questioning witnesses? No, Your Honor, I am asking you to recuse yourself on grounds of bias.
BILL O'Reilly: It is sad and demoralizing when family members fight amongst themselves and that's what is happening to our Navy in its unfair prosecution of fighter pilot David Ridley.
Charged with manslaughter for a friendly fire incident in Afghanistan, Ridley is scapegoat for bad intelligence, incompetent allies, and even the fog of war itself.
Yesterday, things got ugly when Marine Colonel Sarah MacKenzie, the prosecutor, accused the judge, Commander Harmon Rabb, of bias.
( horn honking ) Now, I don't know Commander Rabb, but he is a hero, a decorated fighter pilot, and he has not bailed out of this case.
So, I'm with the commander so far.
And to the Navy, I have only this to say: Don't put handcuffs on your fighter pilots.
That will mean defeat in every way.
( sighs ) I can't discuss the case, Mr.
Secretary.
Of course not.
I would never dream of asking you to, Commander.
But I I do have one question, though.
You've flown in combat.
Did you ever find yourself in a position like Commander Ridley was in in the skies over Afghanistan? Sir, I can't talk about it.
Oh.
As a judge? As an aviator, I can't discuss it.
Well, as an aviator, do you endorse his actions? Sir, I don't know what I would or wouldn't have done without a full understanding of the context of the situation.
But you're going to have to render decisions as a judge.
After a careful review of the facts and the law, sir.
And I suspect that'll be difficult for you because you can so easily put yourself in the shoes of the accused.
A lawyer is trained to look at all sides of an issue.
A judge is required to view the issues objectively.
But I think there may be more sides to this than you realize, Commander.
The cockpit is only one context in play here.
We're in a war on terrorism, and we need to have our allies standing confidently alongside us.
I understand that, Mr.
Secretary.
Well, than you also understand how critical it is to have accountability for the death of three British soldiers.
I will see to it that justice prevails, sir.
I thought we weren't going to discuss the case.
Are we? I wasn't aware.
Well, if we are, sir, it could be construed as unlawful command influence and obstruction of justice.
Oh, well, then, you'd better run.
MacKENZIE: You're the only one I can turn to, sir.
In the middle of a trial? Commander Rabb refuses to recuse himself despite clear evidence of bias.
An interlocutory appeal isn't permitted, so I have to wait until the trial, but if Commander Ridley is acquitted, the Court of Criminal Appeals won't hear it, because the prosecution can't appeal an acquittal.
It's a catch-22.
That's quite a catch, that catch-22.
It's the best there is.
This isn't a joke, Commander.
Oh, what is it exactly you want me to do? Remove Commander Rabb from the case.
I don't think I can do that.
Then order him to recuse himself, sir.
Can't do that, either.
Commander, do you see any reason you shouldn't sit on this trial? Sir, I feel I can continue to discharge my duties fairly and impartially.
Then I request permission to withdraw myself as trial counsel.
On what grounds? I'm incapable of rendering competent services.
Colonel, if you were truly incapable of doing a good job, you wouldn't know it.
And you wouldn't request to be removed.
The mere fact that you made the motion means you're a competent attorney.
Hell, it's a ( sighs ) catch-22.
Request denied.
Aye, sir.
You think I'm favoring the defense? Your rulings do all seem to favor Commander Ridley, sir.
You did ask me to speak my mind, sir.
I'm not favoring the pilot.
I'm just getting after the truth.
Yes, sir.
What, you think I'm going too far? I think that in some situations it's impossible to keep your personal feelings out of it.
I have no personal feelings toward Commander Ridley.
I didn't mean Commander Ridley, sir.
Commander Barry, you were Commander Ridley's wingman on the night of the incident? Yes, ma'am.
You fire any weapons that night? No, ma'am.
Declare self-defense? No, ma'am.
In fact, you never saw what Commander Ridley described as a second burst of anti-aircraft fire, did you? No, ma'am, but I saw the first.
Which turned out not to be enemy fire at all.
Apparently so, Colonel.
But David Ridley doesn't lie.
If he says he saw green lizard men firing at him, I'd believe him.
Objection.
Not responsive.
Sustained.
Would you instruct theembers to disregard the witness's last statement, Your Honor? So instructed.
Would you articulate the instructions, sir? Come on, Colonel.
The Members are up to speed.
Let's move it along.
Perhaps the best way for me to move it along is to sit down.
Your witness.
Commander Barry, how long was this mission? From the time of taking off from the Coral Sea to our return, about nine hours, sir.
In-flight refuelings? Five, sir.
That makes for a pretty grueling nine hours, eh? Keeps us on our toes, sir.
At what point in the mission did the incident occur? We were just minutes from heading back to the Coral Sea.
Must have been tired.
No, sir.
Given the protracted length of the mission, the Battle Group Commander authorized use of Go-Pills.
Doesn't that make it difficult to sleep? We take the No-Go pills for naps.
Is this standard procedure? No, sir.
This particular mission required it.
You took these pills on the day of the incident? Yes, sir.
We both did.
So, you're mixing amphetamines and sleeping pills on the day of a combat mission? Yes, sir.
Medications which may affect mood and judgment and can cause amnesia and paranoia? Objection.
Assumes facts not in evidence.
Sustained as phrased.
Commander, were these medications a problem for you? No, sir.
I'm the flight surgeon aboard the Coral Sea.
Turner: Commander Sachs, do you routinely provide dextro-amphetamines to flit crews? I do, as anti-fatigue medication.
Better bombing through chemistry, Commander? Objection.
Argumentative.
Sustained.
Don't amphetamines have serious side effects, Commander Sachs? Properly used, they increase alertness and focus attention.
And improperly used? Over-stimulation could be deleterious to performance, but I dispense only enough for each flight.
These pills come with warning labels, don't they, Commander? These days, all medication does.
"Can affect perception and impair the ability to operate machinery.
" You shouldn't drive a car while taking these drugs, should you, Commander? That depends on the amount.
But it's okay to fly a $40 million aircraft loaded with high-tech weaponry? Again, Commander, the proper amount of medication used by pilots in top physical condition it's not a problem.
"Medication may provoke irritability "and an unreasonable concern about threats to one's well-being.
" That sounds like paranoia, Commander.
That would be extremely rare.
But not, uh, unheard of.
Some people are allergic to peanuts, Commander Turner.
We don't ban flight crews from eating them.
Are you equating peanuts with amphetamines, Commander Sachs? Objection.
Counsel is baiting the witness.
Colonel, Counsel has the right to cross-examine the witness.
Overruled.
I'm just saying that these warning labels list everything imaginable, no matter how infinitesimal the risk.
Well, how many casualties have to mount up before you no longer consider the risk to be infinitesimal? Objection.
Argumentative.
Sustained.
Commander, do you consider this medication to be safe? These drugs have been in use since before Vietnam.
Their safety's been demonstrated.
But assuming these pills affected Commander Ridley's perception, could that explain why he saw a burst of gunfire that no one else did? Objection.
Calls for speculation.
Sustained.
From now on, I'll let you be the one who objects.
At the briefing, Captain Bales, the CAG, told us there'd been unfriendlies in the area.
Did this come as news to you, Commander Ridley? Hardly, sir.
We'd been fired on three nights earlier.
Did the CAG tell you in the mission briefing that the British would be in the area? No, sir.
Apparently, he never got word from the Coalition Air Ops Center.
Would you tell the Members what happened that night, please? It was pretty uneventful.
Five refuelings.
No calls for air support.
And then Ridley: Hey, look at those fireworks! Barry: Someone's firing at us.
I asked the AWACS for permission to fire 20 mike-mike, the machine gun, and was told to standby.
What did you do then? I descended to get a better look d take a mark of the position in case it was necessary to use a precision-guided bomb.
Ridley: Whoa! You see that? Barry: See what, Sugar One? Taking A-A fire.
Declaring self-defense.
Did you feel justified in declaring self-defense? Yes, sir.
I believed I was being fired upon.
Commander, did you use amphetamines during this mission? Yes, sir.
Ten milligrams prior to takeoff.
Three additional pills of five milligrams each during the flight.
Your witness.
Lieutenant Roberts will do the cross, Your Honor.
Very well.
Lieutenant.
So, the AWACS strike controller instructs you to stand by, and you interpret this to mean go down for a closer look? I interpreted it to mean not to engage yet.
What was the altitude you were at when you noticed the ground fire, sir? About 12,000 feet.
And the surface-to-air fire that you thought you saw Was it reaching your altitude? No, sir.
So, you weren't in any danger until you descended.
That's true, Lieutenant, but if it had been the enemy, they might have had other weapons.
But it wasn't the enemy, sir.
I had no way of knowing that.
I thought it prudent to check out the situation.
Wouldn't it have been more prudent to ascend to a higher altitude and wait for word from the AWACS? Perhaps.
I'm trained to be aggressive as well as prudent.
Did the medication that you're taking make you more aggressive? Uh, no.
Does the medication affect your perception? No.
So, you don't blame the pills for the deaths of three British soldiers? No.
I don't.
If there's any blame, it's all mine.
Thanks, sir.
Sir, how did Colonel MacKenzie know that Commander Ridley wouldn't use the medication as an excuse? Well, she saw Turner hadn't asked Ridley if the pills affected his perception.
And Commander Turner would've asked if the answer had been helpful to his case.
The colonel's a really good lawyer, isn't she, sir? Yeah.
( chuckles ) So she and Lieutenant Roberts have the case won, sir? Well, unless the Members believe Commander Ridley's claim that he'd taken a second burst of fire.
Do you believe Commander Ridley, sir? He was very convincing on the stand.
But then so was the British officer, Lieutenant Whitehall, who claimed they stopped firing, so Almost forgot.
Instructions to the Members.
"If there is a reasonable doubt as to the guilt of the accused, your verdict must be not guilty.
" Well, won't there always be some doubt, Commander? Keep reading.
"A reasonable doubt is not mere conjecture.
"It is an honest, conscientious doubt suggested by the evidence.
"An absolute or mathematical certainty is not required to find a defendant guilty.
" Glad I'm not one of the Members, sir.
Just be glad you're not sitting on the bench.
I-I thought Commander Turner might have been onto something with the tracers looking like surface-to-air fire.
Yeah, but it went nowhere.
Whitehall's preoccupied with the generator.
Commander Ridley descends.
He swears he's taking incoming.
The British swear they ceased firing.
Somebody's got to be lying, sir.
( sighs ) Unless, Commander Ridley saw what he thought was anti-aircraft fire.
Well, what could that be, sir? I mean, they're in the middle of nowhere on a dark night.
Yeah, really dark after the generator went down.
Sir? I think I know what Commander Ridley saw.
That's great, sir.
No, it's not.
I can't tell anyone.
What do we do now, sir? We need to make sure that justice prevails.
Let's take a look at the Code of Judicial Conduct.
Maybe there's an answer there.
COATES: So another example would be, say a witness hobbles into court using a cane and testifies he's so disabled he can hardly walk.
But the judge remembers seeing the witness on the ski slopes two weeks earlier.
The judge has to disqualify himself.
That's what the book says, sir.
"Under the Code of Judicial Conduct, "the judge must not have personal knowledge of disputed evidentiary facts.
" Any exceptions? Yes, sir.
"If the judge learned the knowledge in the court proceeding, he can remain on the case.
" Great, so I can stay on the case, I just, I can't do anything with the information I have.
No, sir.
"A judge must refrain from any action that assists a party.
" "Assists.
" Yes, sir.
What if he "assists" a party but hurts their case? Well, then I guess it wouldn't be assistance, sir.
Nice work, Coates.
Thank you, sir.
For everything, sir.
For requesting me as a clerk, and letting me take part in the case.
All right, the theme of our closing argument should be personal responsibility.
You can't blame the British, you can't blame the Ops Center.
I don't know.
If Commander Ridley had had the Intel, ma'am Morning, you two.
Morning, sir.
Good morning.
I, uh, was wondering when you thought we might get this case to the Members.
Well, that depends on Commander Turner.
He hasn't rested yet.
Do you have rebuttal witnesses? Depends on what the commander does.
Hmm, 'cause I thought you might be getting into the AWACS electronics.
Why would we? I'll see you in court then.
He's trying to tell us something, ma'am.
De-confliction reports.
MASINT records.
Electromagnetic impulse sensors.
Ma'am is it okay for Commander Rabb to be helping us? Well, have you ever know the commander to do anything? Improper? No.
Unconventional, huh, yeah.
E.
M.
I.
transmissions? What about them, ma'am? The AWACS picked up something from the British position.
Well, that wouldn't be unusual.
The Brits have vehicles out there that would throw off E.
M.
Is.
Here's one that spiked.
Something electrical? Something that would be visible from above? I don't get it.
Oh, I think I do.
It looks like the commander just handed us the winning evidence For the defense.
Turner: I have no idea, sir.
It's not like Colonel MacKenzie to be late.
Sorry, Your Honor.
Take your time, Colonel.
May we approach? Yes.
As the court is well aware, under Brady v.
Maryland, the prosecution is required to turn over all exculpatory evidence to the defense.
AWACS' electromagnetic impulse recordings from the night of the incident.
Well, it's a little late for Brady material, isn't it, Colonel? Oh, we just received the information this morning.
But I'm sure the court will grant a short recess to allow you to digest it.
Well, ground fire wouldn't cause electromagnetic impulses so I don't see what relevance this has, unless Whatever produced the impulses could be mistaken as anti-aircraft fire.
Are you ready to proceed, Commander? Yes, sir, I am.
Thank you, Colonel.
Don't thank me, Commander.
Bring in the Members, Marine.
Yes, sir.
It's called the Black Crow.
It's a sensor that picks up and identifies electromagnetic impulses.
Can you identify the sources of these impulses? Yes, sir.
Different equipment produces different electronic signatures.
We can distinguish a laptop computer from a radar antenna from a car's spark plugs.
In fact, sir, we can tell a Cadillac from a Volkswagen 20 miles away.
Did the sensor pick up any E.
M.
I.
activity on the ground the night of the incident? Yes, sir.
There was an output of approximately one kilowatt from what turned out to be the British position.
And could you identify the source of the impulses? They have the signature of a Rolls-Royce R-7 gasoline generator, sir.
Did the impulses hold steady? There were three spikes to ten kilowatts within about five seconds.
What would cause spikes in electromagnetic impulses? The generator may have sparked two or three times when it went down, sir.
Did the sparks light up the night sky? Not from where I was standing, sir.
You were on the ground in the Wadi? Yes, sir.
And the generator was on the bed of a truck above you? Yes, sir.
Where was Commander Ridley's aircraft at the time the generator sparked? Directly above us, Commander.
And therefore directly above the generator that was sparking? Yes, I suppose so.
But that still does not excuse what he did, sir.
Nothing further.
All rise.
Please be seated.
Will the defense please rise.
Will Senior Member announce the findings? Lieutenant Commander David Ridley, United States Navy.
This court-martial finds you, on all charges and specifications not guilty.
RABB: I want to thank the Members and counsel for completing their duties with the highest standards of professional conduct.
But before I adjourn these proceedings, Commander Ridley, although you were not found guilty of a crime under the UCMJ, I find that your conduct in this matter raises questions as to your ability to fly in combat.
Accordingly, I'm recommending to your commanding officer that a Field Evaluation Board be convened to consider your future as a Naval aviator.
This court is adjourned.
( gavel pounding ) CHEGWIDDEN: I assume your friends at State are doing damage control with the British.
All the years as our allies, no, that won't end in a day.
Of course it helps that our pilot really did see something that looked like anti-aircraft fire.
The truth won out.
Hmm.
Everybody wins.
So it behooves us to make sure that such a tragic incident can never again occur on our watch, A.
J.
More dollars spent on communication technology, command and control, training that sounds like the antidote to me.
Sounds like an appropriations bill to me.
Bigger piece of the pie.
We all benefit.
Oh, Commander.
Mr.
Secretary.
I just want to say that your first assignment to the bench was Instinctive.
A.
J.
Mr.
Secretary.
Colonel.
Sir.
Have a seat.
I need to find someone to serve as a judge for a couple of months.
Any volunteers? RABB: You can count me out, sir.
Oh, Commander, I thought you did a fine job.
Well, I don't know, the colonel asked to have me removed from the case.
I got over it.
I'm just not cut out for it, sir.
I'm more of a hunter.
A hunter? It's a metaphor.
The type to hit saber-toothed tigers with sticks.
What this job requires is someone with patience and judgment.
Some-someone like, uh, Mac, Colonel MacKenzie.
Oh, I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me.
Well, let's see what he says the next time he has to appear before you, Your Honor.
Another ten minutes, we'll be headed home.
Hey! Look at those fireworks! SUGAR TWO: Someone's firing at us.
Beehive, this is Sugar One.
We're taking ground fire 20 klicks southwest of Kandahar.
Request permission to hit 'em with 20 mike-mike.
Stand by, Sugar One.
Any reports of unfriendlies near Kandahar, sir? Not tonight.
Tell him to stand by.
Hold your fire, Sugar One.
We're checking it out.
I'm going to take a mark.
SUGAR ONE: We got a couple of vehicles, light artillery.
Whoa.
You see that? SUGAR TWO: See what, Sugar One? SUGAR ONE: Taking A-A fire.
Declaring self-defense.
Switch is hot, set to signal release.
Rolling in.
Master arm on.
Hitting pickle.
Bomb's away.
( whistling ) ( explosion ) BEEHIVE: Shack! Disengage! Disengage! Friendlies.
They were shooting at us.
Sugar Two, you saw that, right? ( groaning ) Easy you'll be all right.
( groans ) CHEGWIDDEN: The Navy's never filed criminal charges over a friendly fire incident in wartime before, until now.
Lieutenant Commander David Ridley dropped a Mark 82 laser-guided bomb on a platoon of British soldiers Three dead, three wounded.
What did the preliminary inquiry find, Sir? Commander Ridley did not have permission from the AWACS to engage.
What are the charges, Admiral? Involuntary manslaughter, dereliction of duty.
You and Lieutenant Roberts will prosecute.
Yes, sir.
I'll be looking forward to getting back into the courtroom again, sir.
Commander Turner, you'll defend.
Aye, sir.
This is a high-profile case.
The media will be in the courtroom.
Commander Rabb, since you'll be presiding, do you have a problem with that? Judge Rabb? Well, as an aviator, I think he has a certain hands-on understanding of the issues.
As an aviator, sir, the commander may be biased in favor of the pilot.
Then don't be.
Absolutely not, sir.
Commander, Colonel, I'm counting on both of you to maintain a certain level of decorum? You'll have no trouble from us, sir.
That'll be all.
Aye, sir.
You seemed pretty confident in there, Harm.
Well, I've observed enough judges.
How hard can it be to be one? I was referring to your assurance that there'll be no sparks between us in the courtroom.
Well, there won't be.
Yeah, that's what I thought when I was a judge.
We know what happened then.
Yeah, you started throwing your judicial weight around and tried to Buffalo a guilty verdict.
Excuse me, I was the one showing restraint.
You were trying to hijack the proceedings by circumventing the rules.
Your rules.
You were making them up as you went along.
Oh, no, you don't.
I was following the law.
Well, you can be sure of one thing While I'm in t hot seat, there'll be no retribution.
No payback? No.
Good.
I'll hold you to it.
The meat loaf not up to your standards this morning, Petty Officer? I'm going to be your clerk of courtsir.
I thought I'd better do some reading.
Well, research never hurt anyone, but a good judge's clerk will temper book smarts with common sense.
By the way, I don't expect you to be a silent partner.
Yes, sir.
What's it say in there, anyway? "A judge must be a passive recipient of information, "a quiet force who is most effective when nearly invisible.
" Commander, Coates.
Mind if we join you? Vnless Your Honor no longer mixes with lowly trial lawyers.
Now is not a good time to get on my bad side, Sturgis.
Roberts: "A trial lawyer who becomes a judge is like a boxer who becomes a referee.
" I never had a judge hit me.
Day's still young.
"It is exceedingly difficult "for the passionate advocate to become the objective observer.
" Don't you two have trial prep? My client's on his way here.
And Colonel MacKenzie is interviewing our witnesses, sir.
Well, why aren't you with her? Colonel MacKenzie has gone out to the Coral Sea, sir.
Roberts: Due to my limited duty status, sir, I'm kind of landlocked.
Turner: Are you worried about being a judge? Why would I "e? You two have all the work to do.
I'm just an objective observer, right, Coates? Right, sir.
You could have told the Admiral you didn't want to preside.
Why would I do that? That would be lying.
Millions of years ago, there were hunters who killed saber-toothed tigers with sticks and stones.
Back at the cave, there were others Not so courageous, but wise and fair And they would divvy up the meat amongst the tribe.
You two don't think I can "carve the meat" fairly? You are a natural born killer, Commander.
MAN: What we have here, Colonel, is command and control error, not pilot error.
MACKENZIE: You're part of command and control, CAG.
And I'm only as good as the information that I'm provided.
So you didn't know the British were conducting a live-fire exercise near Kandahar? The Coalition Air Operations Center never told us.
I briefed my pilots only on what I knew.
Even without the heads-up about the British troops, Commander Ridley is still bound by the rules of engagement.
Correct.
The enemy is not, however, bound by any rules whatsoever.
Well, our rules prohibit deliberately descending into anti-aircraft range in order to draw enemy fire.
Commander Ridley descended to take a mark of the suspected enemy position, not to draw fire.
The AWACS never gave permission to engage, sir.
Colonel, when you are taking A-A fire, you do not need permission Not from AWACS, or a JAG officer.
CAG, the anti-aircraft fire reported by Commander Ridley turned out to be tracers fired at ground level by the British.
Well, it all comes back to intelesn't it, Colonel? No one ever briefed the AWACS that there were friendlies in the area.
If the strike controller had had that information, there wouldn't have been a delay in getting the word to Ridley, and he never would have engaged.
MAN: Given the circumstances, I believed that dropping a single bomb on an apparent enemy position was both necessary and proportional.
What circumstances? There had been unfriendlies in the area three days prior.
And on two previous missions, I'd taken incoming.
Doesn't that count for something? It would, had you shot at the unfriendlies instead of the British.
From 5,000 feet at night, tracer fire looks like A-A fire.
Ask my wingman, he saw it.
That's another problem When I interviewed Lieutenant Commander Barry, he said he never saw the second burst, the one that prompted you to fire.
So, he missed it.
He saw the first one.
The British say they stopped shooting when they saw you descend.
They claim there was no second burst.
We need to find a defense for you, Commander.
BILL O'Reilly: It is absolutely second-guessing at its worst.
It's hypocritical, unjust, and dangerous to the country.
A pilot in combat makes a split-second decision then is forced to answer to some pinhead politician if something goes wrong? Hey, It's war lots of stuff goes wrong.
You cannot turn an honest mistake on the battlefield into a crime, and you can't treat American fighting men like criminals if an accident happens.
Come on.
We have a war to fight.
I don't always agree with him, but he's right partly.
What part is that, sir? We do have a war to fight.
And I'm not just talking about Afghanistan.
I'm talking about a place that's even more dangerous Capitol Hill, Appropriations.
I'm not sure, I, uh, see the connection.
The British are screaming bloody murder, A.
J.
That makes senators with purse strings nervous about funding.
It's tragic, the whole thing.
One grave error, three young men pay with their lives.
Now another one's going to have to pay with his career.
Well, sir, that has yet to be determined.
Commander Ridley made a mistake.
Now, surely, when it comes to holding our people accountable, the Navy's standards are higher than those of the court of public opinion.
Our standards are the same as they've always been, Mr.
Secretary a presumption of innocence, and a fair and impartial hearing of the facts.
Which is why you appointed an aviator to sit in judgment of one of his own? Commander Rabb is an excellent attorney, and I'm sure he'll make an excellent judge.
I hope you're right.
Yes, sir.
Washington is at least as much about appearances as it is about policy.
I told you that I would fight the good fight to get the Navy what it needs.
I just hope that this incident doesn't jeopardize that.
I know you share that hope with me, A.
J.
Yes, sir.
Turner: Bloodwork showed amphetamines in your system after the incident.
That'd be from the Go-pills, sir.
One pill every two or three hours in flight.
Plus traces of Benzodiazepine.
No-Go pills, sir.
Sedatives? Yeah.
It's for a combat nap before takeoff.
You're mixing stimulants with sedatives.
Everything's prescribed by the flight surgeon.
These Go-pills they make you jittery or nervous? No, sir.
More like honing my concentration to a razor-sharp edge, sir.
Good.
Good, just make sure you tell that to the jury.
( sighs ) All the pilots take anti-fatigue medication, Commander.
I don't see how the prosecution's going to use that against me.
They're not going to, Ridley.
We're going to use it to get you off If we're lucky.
BAILIFF: All rise.
RABB: Please be seated.
This court martial will now come to order.
Let the record reflect that the accused, counsel and Members are all present.
Is prosecution ready to proceed? We are, Your Honor.
And the defense? Ready, Your Honor.
Before we begin, will counsel please approach the bench? What's with the cheering section? I have no control over the Secretary of the Navy, Your Honor.
Well, let him know that I will not stand for any displays of favoritism in my courtroom.
I'll do my best.
All right, let's roll.
Excuse me? Proceed, Colonel.
Friendly fire.
That's such an innocent sounding phrase, but there's another term, too fratricide.
The killing of one's brother.
In this case, our brothers in arms, British soldiers in Afghanistan.
The prosecution will prove that the defendant, Lieutenant Commander David Ridley, violated the rules of engagement and disregarded instructions from a strike controller on an AWACS aircraft.
The result Commander Ridley recklessly dropped a precision-guided bomb But not on the enemy On British soldiers, killing three.
His excuse? Well, he claimed it was self-defense, that someone was firing at him.
But there are no other witnesses who can corroborate that.
Colonel, this sounds more like a closing argument.
Please confine your opening to a preview of evidence you plan to submit.
I thought I was, Your Honor.
It's my call, Counselor.
Prosecution will prove that Commander Ridley is guilty of dereliction of duty and involuntary manslaughter.
Thank you.
Friendly fire is a problem as old as warfare itself.
General Stonewall Jackson, in the Civil War, was killed by his own men on a night-time mission.
During Desert Storm, nearly 25% of our causalities were caused by friendly fire.
And while these losses are tragic, they're also unavoidable.
Objection.
This is argumentative.
Overruled.
Turner: It is against this backdrop that you will consider the case of Lieutenant Commander David Ridley, a decorated and highly skilled pilot, who took incoming fire three days earlier from the same locale.
MAN ( British accent ): We were positioned in Wadi-East, a ditch about 25 kilometers southwest of Kandahar.
And what are your duties, Lieutenant Whitehall? Range Safety Officer for the live-fire exercise.
Will you please tell the Members what happened that night? My unit was engaged in tank-stalking operations.
Were your men firing weapons? Small arms and machine guns, Leftenant.
All at ground level.
And did there come a time when you observed an aircraft? There did.
Can you please tell the Members what happened then? When we saw the American aircraft approaching, I called for a "check-fire.
" Did the firing cease? Ours did, Leftenant.
But one of the American jets swooped down over our position.
Did you transmit the Coalition Air Ops? Our generator had just broken down.
A few seconds later, the American bomb hit us.
I lost three men.
Lance Corporal Greengrass, Lance Corporal Weatherall, Staff Sergeant Porter.
You were injured in the attack as well.
I was some distance from the strike, sir.
But clearly not far enough.
Your witness, Cwmmander.
Lieutenant, why did you tell your men to cease firing when you saw the American jets overhead? We all knew about the American gunship firing into that wedding party at Uruzgan, sir.
Killed 40 civilians.
The wedding party where the celebrants were firing small arms into the air.
Objection, Your Honor.
That incident is irrelevant to these proceedings.
Your witness opened the door, Counselor.
Overruled.
Local Afghans were firing into the air, Commander.
Apparently, that's how they celebrate.
The American flight crew wasn't charged with a crime in that incident, was it, Lieutenant? Your Honor.
Now you're pushing it.
Sorry, Your Honor.
During your tank-stalking exercises, did your men fire any weapons into the air? No, sir.
But they fired from the Wadi floor upwards, towards a tank on higher ground.
That's correct, sir, yes.
Your machine guns shoot tracers, don't they? Every fifth round.
And tracers light up the night sky.
That's correct, yes, sir.
So your men were firing small arms and machine guns; You were trying to fix a broken generator; You were worried about two jets flying over, and yet you're sure none of your men fired after Commander Ridley's plane descended over your position.
I'm quite sure, sir.
Nothing further.
MacKENZIE: I don't mind taking an unpopular case.
Public opinion's against us.
The SECNAV wants a quick hanging.
Turner's a tough opponent.
I can handle all that.
To have to fight the judge, too? He's completely out of line.
You know, he's injecting his own opinion, breaking my momentum wherever he can.
How much more payback do you think the guy can dish out? With all do respect, ma'am, maybe we should just focus on what's under our control.
Are you defending him? Because he is out of line, Bud.
I'm sorry if you can't see that because of some residual commander worship.
I think your right, ma'am.
Sometimes the people we look up to do have feet of Clay.
So would you say I was a passive recipient of information today? Sir? "A quiet force who's most effective when nearly invisible"? Yes, Commander.
Is that what you really think? I think Colonel MacKenzie's having a tough time in there, sir.
And you think that I'm the cause of that.
I think she might think you're the cause of it.
Colonel no, as you were.
I just wanted to commend you and Lieutenant Roberts on just an excellent job thus far.
Thank you, Mr.
Secretary.
I'm a bit surprised at the apparent level of hostility between you and the commander in the courtroom.
I imagined you might have a bit more sway.
Well, neither the commander nor I sway easily, sir.
Well, if I can be of any assistance in your pursuit of the truth You can, sir.
Really? I think it would be helpful if you weren't sitting on my side of the courtroom during the proceedings, sir, in the interest of eliminating sway.
Mm.
Yes, I can find other ways to spend my afternoons.
Colonel, again, keep up the good work.
WOMAN: Commander Ridley asked for permission to engage.
I told him to stand by.
What did you do next, Lieutenant Kaufman? I attempted to ascertain whether there were any friendlies in the area, ma'am.
And what did Commander Ridley do? He descended, declared self-defense and dropped a 500-pound bomb before I could get back to him.
Your witness.
Nothing at this time, Your Honor, subject to my right to recall the witness.
I have a few questions, Lieutenant.
Your Honor? Yes, Colonel? Nothing, sir.
Wouldn't you normally have that information available? What Coalition troops are in the area? Yes, sir, but there was a breakdown.
The British reported their exercise to the Coalition Air Ops Center, but it slipped through the cracks at the Center and never got to us.
But Commander Ridley would have expected to have received the information immediately, correct? Your Honor, I have to object to the hypothetical question.
You're objecting to my question? I am, Your Honor.
Overruled.
May we approach? Sure, come on up.
You may approach.
Your Honor, I object to your questioning the witness.
The Court has that right, Colonel, you know that.
Do you have a problem with my questioning the witness? No, Your Honor, but I had planned to ask the witness the same questions later and I still do.
Oh, great, then the Members get to hear it twice.
Once with the inference that the judge favors the defense.
That was not my intent, Colonel.
Clarity was.
Well, the effect is to prejudice the prosecution.
If I'm going to lose this case, I'd like to do it without any help from the bench.
What is your problem? You are, Your Honor.
Respectfully.
First you interrupt my opening statement, and then you let defense counsel refer to another friendly fire incident where no charges were filed and now your questions of Lieutenant Kaufman imply that the Air Ops Center was to blame.
So what do you want, Colonel? Some judicial restraint, sir.
You're asking me to refrain from questioning witnesses? No, Your Honor, I am asking you to recuse yourself on grounds of bias.
BILL O'Reilly: It is sad and demoralizing when family members fight amongst themselves and that's what is happening to our Navy in its unfair prosecution of fighter pilot David Ridley.
Charged with manslaughter for a friendly fire incident in Afghanistan, Ridley is scapegoat for bad intelligence, incompetent allies, and even the fog of war itself.
Yesterday, things got ugly when Marine Colonel Sarah MacKenzie, the prosecutor, accused the judge, Commander Harmon Rabb, of bias.
( horn honking ) Now, I don't know Commander Rabb, but he is a hero, a decorated fighter pilot, and he has not bailed out of this case.
So, I'm with the commander so far.
And to the Navy, I have only this to say: Don't put handcuffs on your fighter pilots.
That will mean defeat in every way.
( sighs ) I can't discuss the case, Mr.
Secretary.
Of course not.
I would never dream of asking you to, Commander.
But I I do have one question, though.
You've flown in combat.
Did you ever find yourself in a position like Commander Ridley was in in the skies over Afghanistan? Sir, I can't talk about it.
Oh.
As a judge? As an aviator, I can't discuss it.
Well, as an aviator, do you endorse his actions? Sir, I don't know what I would or wouldn't have done without a full understanding of the context of the situation.
But you're going to have to render decisions as a judge.
After a careful review of the facts and the law, sir.
And I suspect that'll be difficult for you because you can so easily put yourself in the shoes of the accused.
A lawyer is trained to look at all sides of an issue.
A judge is required to view the issues objectively.
But I think there may be more sides to this than you realize, Commander.
The cockpit is only one context in play here.
We're in a war on terrorism, and we need to have our allies standing confidently alongside us.
I understand that, Mr.
Secretary.
Well, than you also understand how critical it is to have accountability for the death of three British soldiers.
I will see to it that justice prevails, sir.
I thought we weren't going to discuss the case.
Are we? I wasn't aware.
Well, if we are, sir, it could be construed as unlawful command influence and obstruction of justice.
Oh, well, then, you'd better run.
MacKENZIE: You're the only one I can turn to, sir.
In the middle of a trial? Commander Rabb refuses to recuse himself despite clear evidence of bias.
An interlocutory appeal isn't permitted, so I have to wait until the trial, but if Commander Ridley is acquitted, the Court of Criminal Appeals won't hear it, because the prosecution can't appeal an acquittal.
It's a catch-22.
That's quite a catch, that catch-22.
It's the best there is.
This isn't a joke, Commander.
Oh, what is it exactly you want me to do? Remove Commander Rabb from the case.
I don't think I can do that.
Then order him to recuse himself, sir.
Can't do that, either.
Commander, do you see any reason you shouldn't sit on this trial? Sir, I feel I can continue to discharge my duties fairly and impartially.
Then I request permission to withdraw myself as trial counsel.
On what grounds? I'm incapable of rendering competent services.
Colonel, if you were truly incapable of doing a good job, you wouldn't know it.
And you wouldn't request to be removed.
The mere fact that you made the motion means you're a competent attorney.
Hell, it's a ( sighs ) catch-22.
Request denied.
Aye, sir.
You think I'm favoring the defense? Your rulings do all seem to favor Commander Ridley, sir.
You did ask me to speak my mind, sir.
I'm not favoring the pilot.
I'm just getting after the truth.
Yes, sir.
What, you think I'm going too far? I think that in some situations it's impossible to keep your personal feelings out of it.
I have no personal feelings toward Commander Ridley.
I didn't mean Commander Ridley, sir.
Commander Barry, you were Commander Ridley's wingman on the night of the incident? Yes, ma'am.
You fire any weapons that night? No, ma'am.
Declare self-defense? No, ma'am.
In fact, you never saw what Commander Ridley described as a second burst of anti-aircraft fire, did you? No, ma'am, but I saw the first.
Which turned out not to be enemy fire at all.
Apparently so, Colonel.
But David Ridley doesn't lie.
If he says he saw green lizard men firing at him, I'd believe him.
Objection.
Not responsive.
Sustained.
Would you instruct theembers to disregard the witness's last statement, Your Honor? So instructed.
Would you articulate the instructions, sir? Come on, Colonel.
The Members are up to speed.
Let's move it along.
Perhaps the best way for me to move it along is to sit down.
Your witness.
Commander Barry, how long was this mission? From the time of taking off from the Coral Sea to our return, about nine hours, sir.
In-flight refuelings? Five, sir.
That makes for a pretty grueling nine hours, eh? Keeps us on our toes, sir.
At what point in the mission did the incident occur? We were just minutes from heading back to the Coral Sea.
Must have been tired.
No, sir.
Given the protracted length of the mission, the Battle Group Commander authorized use of Go-Pills.
Doesn't that make it difficult to sleep? We take the No-Go pills for naps.
Is this standard procedure? No, sir.
This particular mission required it.
You took these pills on the day of the incident? Yes, sir.
We both did.
So, you're mixing amphetamines and sleeping pills on the day of a combat mission? Yes, sir.
Medications which may affect mood and judgment and can cause amnesia and paranoia? Objection.
Assumes facts not in evidence.
Sustained as phrased.
Commander, were these medications a problem for you? No, sir.
I'm the flight surgeon aboard the Coral Sea.
Turner: Commander Sachs, do you routinely provide dextro-amphetamines to flit crews? I do, as anti-fatigue medication.
Better bombing through chemistry, Commander? Objection.
Argumentative.
Sustained.
Don't amphetamines have serious side effects, Commander Sachs? Properly used, they increase alertness and focus attention.
And improperly used? Over-stimulation could be deleterious to performance, but I dispense only enough for each flight.
These pills come with warning labels, don't they, Commander? These days, all medication does.
"Can affect perception and impair the ability to operate machinery.
" You shouldn't drive a car while taking these drugs, should you, Commander? That depends on the amount.
But it's okay to fly a $40 million aircraft loaded with high-tech weaponry? Again, Commander, the proper amount of medication used by pilots in top physical condition it's not a problem.
"Medication may provoke irritability "and an unreasonable concern about threats to one's well-being.
" That sounds like paranoia, Commander.
That would be extremely rare.
But not, uh, unheard of.
Some people are allergic to peanuts, Commander Turner.
We don't ban flight crews from eating them.
Are you equating peanuts with amphetamines, Commander Sachs? Objection.
Counsel is baiting the witness.
Colonel, Counsel has the right to cross-examine the witness.
Overruled.
I'm just saying that these warning labels list everything imaginable, no matter how infinitesimal the risk.
Well, how many casualties have to mount up before you no longer consider the risk to be infinitesimal? Objection.
Argumentative.
Sustained.
Commander, do you consider this medication to be safe? These drugs have been in use since before Vietnam.
Their safety's been demonstrated.
But assuming these pills affected Commander Ridley's perception, could that explain why he saw a burst of gunfire that no one else did? Objection.
Calls for speculation.
Sustained.
From now on, I'll let you be the one who objects.
At the briefing, Captain Bales, the CAG, told us there'd been unfriendlies in the area.
Did this come as news to you, Commander Ridley? Hardly, sir.
We'd been fired on three nights earlier.
Did the CAG tell you in the mission briefing that the British would be in the area? No, sir.
Apparently, he never got word from the Coalition Air Ops Center.
Would you tell the Members what happened that night, please? It was pretty uneventful.
Five refuelings.
No calls for air support.
And then Ridley: Hey, look at those fireworks! Barry: Someone's firing at us.
I asked the AWACS for permission to fire 20 mike-mike, the machine gun, and was told to standby.
What did you do then? I descended to get a better look d take a mark of the position in case it was necessary to use a precision-guided bomb.
Ridley: Whoa! You see that? Barry: See what, Sugar One? Taking A-A fire.
Declaring self-defense.
Did you feel justified in declaring self-defense? Yes, sir.
I believed I was being fired upon.
Commander, did you use amphetamines during this mission? Yes, sir.
Ten milligrams prior to takeoff.
Three additional pills of five milligrams each during the flight.
Your witness.
Lieutenant Roberts will do the cross, Your Honor.
Very well.
Lieutenant.
So, the AWACS strike controller instructs you to stand by, and you interpret this to mean go down for a closer look? I interpreted it to mean not to engage yet.
What was the altitude you were at when you noticed the ground fire, sir? About 12,000 feet.
And the surface-to-air fire that you thought you saw Was it reaching your altitude? No, sir.
So, you weren't in any danger until you descended.
That's true, Lieutenant, but if it had been the enemy, they might have had other weapons.
But it wasn't the enemy, sir.
I had no way of knowing that.
I thought it prudent to check out the situation.
Wouldn't it have been more prudent to ascend to a higher altitude and wait for word from the AWACS? Perhaps.
I'm trained to be aggressive as well as prudent.
Did the medication that you're taking make you more aggressive? Uh, no.
Does the medication affect your perception? No.
So, you don't blame the pills for the deaths of three British soldiers? No.
I don't.
If there's any blame, it's all mine.
Thanks, sir.
Sir, how did Colonel MacKenzie know that Commander Ridley wouldn't use the medication as an excuse? Well, she saw Turner hadn't asked Ridley if the pills affected his perception.
And Commander Turner would've asked if the answer had been helpful to his case.
The colonel's a really good lawyer, isn't she, sir? Yeah.
( chuckles ) So she and Lieutenant Roberts have the case won, sir? Well, unless the Members believe Commander Ridley's claim that he'd taken a second burst of fire.
Do you believe Commander Ridley, sir? He was very convincing on the stand.
But then so was the British officer, Lieutenant Whitehall, who claimed they stopped firing, so Almost forgot.
Instructions to the Members.
"If there is a reasonable doubt as to the guilt of the accused, your verdict must be not guilty.
" Well, won't there always be some doubt, Commander? Keep reading.
"A reasonable doubt is not mere conjecture.
"It is an honest, conscientious doubt suggested by the evidence.
"An absolute or mathematical certainty is not required to find a defendant guilty.
" Glad I'm not one of the Members, sir.
Just be glad you're not sitting on the bench.
I-I thought Commander Turner might have been onto something with the tracers looking like surface-to-air fire.
Yeah, but it went nowhere.
Whitehall's preoccupied with the generator.
Commander Ridley descends.
He swears he's taking incoming.
The British swear they ceased firing.
Somebody's got to be lying, sir.
( sighs ) Unless, Commander Ridley saw what he thought was anti-aircraft fire.
Well, what could that be, sir? I mean, they're in the middle of nowhere on a dark night.
Yeah, really dark after the generator went down.
Sir? I think I know what Commander Ridley saw.
That's great, sir.
No, it's not.
I can't tell anyone.
What do we do now, sir? We need to make sure that justice prevails.
Let's take a look at the Code of Judicial Conduct.
Maybe there's an answer there.
COATES: So another example would be, say a witness hobbles into court using a cane and testifies he's so disabled he can hardly walk.
But the judge remembers seeing the witness on the ski slopes two weeks earlier.
The judge has to disqualify himself.
That's what the book says, sir.
"Under the Code of Judicial Conduct, "the judge must not have personal knowledge of disputed evidentiary facts.
" Any exceptions? Yes, sir.
"If the judge learned the knowledge in the court proceeding, he can remain on the case.
" Great, so I can stay on the case, I just, I can't do anything with the information I have.
No, sir.
"A judge must refrain from any action that assists a party.
" "Assists.
" Yes, sir.
What if he "assists" a party but hurts their case? Well, then I guess it wouldn't be assistance, sir.
Nice work, Coates.
Thank you, sir.
For everything, sir.
For requesting me as a clerk, and letting me take part in the case.
All right, the theme of our closing argument should be personal responsibility.
You can't blame the British, you can't blame the Ops Center.
I don't know.
If Commander Ridley had had the Intel, ma'am Morning, you two.
Morning, sir.
Good morning.
I, uh, was wondering when you thought we might get this case to the Members.
Well, that depends on Commander Turner.
He hasn't rested yet.
Do you have rebuttal witnesses? Depends on what the commander does.
Hmm, 'cause I thought you might be getting into the AWACS electronics.
Why would we? I'll see you in court then.
He's trying to tell us something, ma'am.
De-confliction reports.
MASINT records.
Electromagnetic impulse sensors.
Ma'am is it okay for Commander Rabb to be helping us? Well, have you ever know the commander to do anything? Improper? No.
Unconventional, huh, yeah.
E.
M.
I.
transmissions? What about them, ma'am? The AWACS picked up something from the British position.
Well, that wouldn't be unusual.
The Brits have vehicles out there that would throw off E.
M.
Is.
Here's one that spiked.
Something electrical? Something that would be visible from above? I don't get it.
Oh, I think I do.
It looks like the commander just handed us the winning evidence For the defense.
Turner: I have no idea, sir.
It's not like Colonel MacKenzie to be late.
Sorry, Your Honor.
Take your time, Colonel.
May we approach? Yes.
As the court is well aware, under Brady v.
Maryland, the prosecution is required to turn over all exculpatory evidence to the defense.
AWACS' electromagnetic impulse recordings from the night of the incident.
Well, it's a little late for Brady material, isn't it, Colonel? Oh, we just received the information this morning.
But I'm sure the court will grant a short recess to allow you to digest it.
Well, ground fire wouldn't cause electromagnetic impulses so I don't see what relevance this has, unless Whatever produced the impulses could be mistaken as anti-aircraft fire.
Are you ready to proceed, Commander? Yes, sir, I am.
Thank you, Colonel.
Don't thank me, Commander.
Bring in the Members, Marine.
Yes, sir.
It's called the Black Crow.
It's a sensor that picks up and identifies electromagnetic impulses.
Can you identify the sources of these impulses? Yes, sir.
Different equipment produces different electronic signatures.
We can distinguish a laptop computer from a radar antenna from a car's spark plugs.
In fact, sir, we can tell a Cadillac from a Volkswagen 20 miles away.
Did the sensor pick up any E.
M.
I.
activity on the ground the night of the incident? Yes, sir.
There was an output of approximately one kilowatt from what turned out to be the British position.
And could you identify the source of the impulses? They have the signature of a Rolls-Royce R-7 gasoline generator, sir.
Did the impulses hold steady? There were three spikes to ten kilowatts within about five seconds.
What would cause spikes in electromagnetic impulses? The generator may have sparked two or three times when it went down, sir.
Did the sparks light up the night sky? Not from where I was standing, sir.
You were on the ground in the Wadi? Yes, sir.
And the generator was on the bed of a truck above you? Yes, sir.
Where was Commander Ridley's aircraft at the time the generator sparked? Directly above us, Commander.
And therefore directly above the generator that was sparking? Yes, I suppose so.
But that still does not excuse what he did, sir.
Nothing further.
All rise.
Please be seated.
Will the defense please rise.
Will Senior Member announce the findings? Lieutenant Commander David Ridley, United States Navy.
This court-martial finds you, on all charges and specifications not guilty.
RABB: I want to thank the Members and counsel for completing their duties with the highest standards of professional conduct.
But before I adjourn these proceedings, Commander Ridley, although you were not found guilty of a crime under the UCMJ, I find that your conduct in this matter raises questions as to your ability to fly in combat.
Accordingly, I'm recommending to your commanding officer that a Field Evaluation Board be convened to consider your future as a Naval aviator.
This court is adjourned.
( gavel pounding ) CHEGWIDDEN: I assume your friends at State are doing damage control with the British.
All the years as our allies, no, that won't end in a day.
Of course it helps that our pilot really did see something that looked like anti-aircraft fire.
The truth won out.
Hmm.
Everybody wins.
So it behooves us to make sure that such a tragic incident can never again occur on our watch, A.
J.
More dollars spent on communication technology, command and control, training that sounds like the antidote to me.
Sounds like an appropriations bill to me.
Bigger piece of the pie.
We all benefit.
Oh, Commander.
Mr.
Secretary.
I just want to say that your first assignment to the bench was Instinctive.
A.
J.
Mr.
Secretary.
Colonel.
Sir.
Have a seat.
I need to find someone to serve as a judge for a couple of months.
Any volunteers? RABB: You can count me out, sir.
Oh, Commander, I thought you did a fine job.
Well, I don't know, the colonel asked to have me removed from the case.
I got over it.
I'm just not cut out for it, sir.
I'm more of a hunter.
A hunter? It's a metaphor.
The type to hit saber-toothed tigers with sticks.
What this job requires is someone with patience and judgment.
Some-someone like, uh, Mac, Colonel MacKenzie.
Oh, I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me.
Well, let's see what he says the next time he has to appear before you, Your Honor.